WELCOME TO THE OFFICIAL RICHARD E GERSTEIN JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG. THIS BLOG IS DEDICATED TO JUSTICE BUILDING RUMOR, HUMOR, AND A DISCUSSION ABOUT AND BETWEEN THE JUDGES, LAWYERS AND THE DEDICATED SUPPORT STAFF, CLERKS, COURT REPORTERS, AND CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS WHO LABOR IN THE WORLD OF MIAMI'S CRIMINAL JUSTICE. POST YOUR COMMENTS, OR SEND RUMPOLE A PRIVATE EMAIL AT HOWARDROARK21@GMAIL.COM

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

30 YEARS AND JUROR RENO

We received this comment, which we edited for this post. The full comment is under Monday’s post by the Captain.:

Dear all:30 years for 2 checks. I want to call your attention to a case that recently was before Judge Patrick Cavanaugh, a Circuit Judge in Baltimore County, Maryland. Judge Cavanaugh sentenced Andrew to 30 years in prison for writing two bad checks. Yes, you read that right. Before I discuss the case, I want to say that I am asking for five minutes of your time, and very minimal action which may save a young man 30 years of his life. Andrew Maurice Fisher is a poor 24 year old young black man in Baltimore. ..

Here are the relevant facts: Andrew has absolutely NO PRIOR CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS. He is, by all accounts a good, fun-loving kid. He doesn’t touch drugs or get in trouble. He is especially close with his family and helped to raise his younger brother who is, in large part thanks to Andrew, the first member of their family to attend college. There had been a rash of burglaries in the apartment complex where Andrew and his family live. The landlord mentioned to Andrew that they needed to install a security system, and Andrew, hoping to make a few bucks, volunteered to take on the project. The two checks written to the security company for equipment were not valid. Admittedly, we are talking about a lot of money…close to $20,000. Andrew either messed up, or made a bad decision, but that is the extent of it. No one was hurt, maimed, violated, etc. In the midst of an otherwise wonderful life, this can in no way justify a lengthy prison sentence, no less one of 30 years. Andrew, wanting to make amends for the situation pled guilty to the charge. The Judge then launched him. He gave him the maximum amount of time on both counts consecutive to one another. At sentencing our wonderfully Just Judge made a comment that if Andrew could pay the money, he would let him out of jail. In other words, if he were wealthy, he would not be in prison. This is the basis of an ongoing appeal. 30 years for 2 checks.

Here is some perspective. In Florida, where I practice, the maximum sentence one can get for rape with penetration is 15 years…and Florida is known as a State with fairly draconian sentencing laws. This injustice must be resolved.So, what can you do?First off, quick e-mails to the Governor of Maryland, who is fairly progressive, are a good start. Here is the link: EMAILI would ask everyone who receives this e-mail to at least do that. He is the only person with pardon and commutation power in Maryland, and enough e-mails may prompt him to review the case.

Rumpole says: The individual who left this as a comment appears to be a lawyer in Florida and did not leave an email address. We invite him or her to do so, so we can get more information. However, this is an injustice that needs to be fixed.

We have constantly commented on the inhumanity of Judges and Prosecutors who toss around decades in jail as if it doesn’t mean much at all to spend time in prison. Prison should exist for violent offenders and violent repeat offenders. We cannot afford to warehouse everyone the Legislature believes should be in prison. Until the law changes we are forced to deal with these outrages on a case by case basis. This appears to be a case worthy of our time.

KUDOS TO JANET RENO

As the Herald reported yesterday, citizen Janet Reno, former State Attorney, former Attorney General of the United States, reported for Jury duty in our Justice Building on Monday morning. Just a guess, but how many other former presidential cabinet members ever report to jury duty as opposed to “pulling strings” to get out of it? None. But then, Janet Reno is not like most other politicians. Once again, by her simple dignity, she has made us proud.

51 comments:

Anonymous
said...

rumpoleare you a prosecutor? perhaps you forgot your alter ego rumpole's motto. "thou shall not prosecute."the REAL rumpole would never leave janet reno on one of his juries! pull you head out of the sky.

"I am really glad to see that somebody has finally acted on their primal impulses to mow down these idiots that pack up and block traffic in their tight pants. Last time I checked there were no license plates on their bikes, that makes them secondary to paying customers CARS ! They should not be allowed to clog roads and use only designated bike lanes where available. "

Some idiot wrote that comment on the herald blog about the bike accident in Kendall.

I was in Judge Lindsey's court room Monday morning. She started calling cases for calender and the entire court room, police officers included, started cracking up when she called the case of Mr. Enrique Eglasias. He didn't show, but just hearing his name made everyone giggle.

It is hard to imagine that anyone, whether they agree with the policies set and followed by General Reno, would still feel the need to vilify this unbelievably dedicated public servant. Does anyone not acccept that she would have been a far superior governor to our dearly gone Jeb.

Did things go wrong sometimes? Yes. Was she misinformed by those around her at times? Yes. Was she patient, understanding but ultimately challenged to stand up for the rule of law in "Elian"? You bet. In that case, did anyone doubt that it was going to end the way it did? No. Was that her fault? No.

She is difficult, too much of a micro-manager and at times eccentric, but she has always stood and is still standing up for what she believed was right. I would rather have her than say .... Gonzalez, Ashcroft or Mitchell. Oh yeah and wouldn't you rather her now than KFR. Come on people, give the woman her due.

You say you're gonna leaveGonna take that big white birdGonna fly right out of hereWithout a single wordDon't you know you'll break my heartWhen I watch you close that doorCause I know I won't see your posts anymore

Haven't I been good to you?What about all those postsDoesn't that mean love to you?Doesn't that mean anything?If I threw away my prideAnd I got down on my kneesWould I have to beg you, "pretty please"

Don't pull your love out on me trialmasterIf you do then I think that maybeI'll just lay me down and cry for a hundred yearsDon't pull your love out on me honeyTake my heart, my soul, my moneyBut don't leave me drownin' in my tears

Over the last couple of weeks, I have been reading the blog with great interest. My name is Joe George the head of the southern most regional conflict office. I am taking applications for young ambitious lawyers to fill positions as "regional pit lawyers." If anyone is interested, please forward your CV to my branch office at, Anthony Abraham(Pre Owned)14321 South Dixie HywyMiami Florida, 33156

What an great world we live in. My Texas Attorney General runs to the court house to quash a jury subpoena for me so I don't have to disclose my two DUI convictions and the PTI for cocaine while I stand outside and talk about how great it is to serve.

9:06. Take a bow. You, my friend, "think outside the box." Now I'm not saying you are correct,however I will reward you for thinking about something no one else has. Send me a private email, and I will send you a juicy clue, just for you.

LETS DO THE HONORABLE THING HERE FOLKS..SOMEONE WHO MAY KNOW THOSE JUDGE'S WHO HAVE RETAINED ONE SAID CONSULTANT NAMED ROBERT LEVY PLEASE LIST THEM AND THERE YOU HAVE THE CANDIDATES WHICH MUST BE "OUTED" AND BOOTED OFF THE BENCH...

Good Afternoon and welcome to the Office of Conflict Counsel. I am glad to see such an experienced and diverse group of applicants. Heading our word processing division is Caesar who handled invoices so well at Anthony Abraham chevrolet. We have Charlotte as our receptionist after a short but distinguished career at AAA escorts after she anwerered our phones for 4 years, glad to see you back behind the switchboard. Heading up our library will be Jonathan, as you recall he bought 4 cars from us and has an AA degree which he obtained after retiring from drug dealing which is how he bought the 4 cars from me, this after all is Miami. As of yet we have no attorneys willing to handle the most difficult cases that the PD does not want so I will be hiring as paralegals convicted felons, preferably excons because they have a lot of criminal experience, especially ones who drafted long rule 3s. OK, lets go get them and make me proud. Oh, one more thing, is the criminal courthouse the one near JMH or is it the one near the downtown MDCC, I always get the two confused.

If you want to know who has hired Bob "The Scum" Levy, all you have to do is check the Miami-Dade County Election Department filings or the Secretary of State filings to see the expenditures reported by the declared candidates. Levy operates under "Levy and Associates". The usual check is $5,000. That was different for a couple of election cycles when he was working with Al Lorenzo and the money was going through Al's company "Get Out the Vote, Inc."

The idea that judges and candidates hiring Levy should be "outed" is a a good one. The public should know and so should lawyers who are solicited for contributions. If those using his services were told "no money as long as you use Levy", watch how fast his business dries up.

It is not that the others are good. It is just that he is so evil. Can't get rid of all of them at once. But Levy is a great start.

TALLAHASSEE -- An ''unprecedented'' ethics case that has exposed a rift in one of Florida's most important appeals courts came before a Broward County judge Thursday.

Circuit Court Judge Paul Backman must now consider whether or not to keep intact charges against First District Court of Appeal Judge Michael Allen.

Allen came under fire for blasting a fellow appeals judge in a June 2006 legal opinion. Allen suggested in that opinion that Judge Charles Kahn should have recused himself in a bribery case involving former legislator W.D. Childers.

Before he was appointed to the bench, Kahn was a law partner with Fred Levin, who represented Childers in his appeals case.

Bruce Rogow, an attorney and law professor at Nova Southeastern University, asked Backman to drop the charges against Allen, saying it was an ''unprecedented situation'' to have a sitting judge charged based on what he wrote in a legal opinion.

Rogow said any charge against a sitting judge must contain evidence that the actions warrant removal from the bench, even if that ultimately is not the penalty imposed by the Florida Supreme Court.

''The mere publication of that opinion does not demonstrate a present unfitness to hold office,'' Rogow said.

But Wally Pope, the lawyer representing the Judicial Qualifications Commission, disagreed, saying Allen's criticism of Kahn undermined the judiciary overall and suggested Kahn was corrupt. Pope pointed out that no one had previously asked Kahn to recuse himself in the case and that Allen was relying on information from newspaper articles about Childers and Levin that could not be verified.

After listening to both sides, Backman said he would issue a written order on the motion to dismiss the charges ``as quickly as possible.''

Childers was convicted of bribing a fellow Escambia County commissioner and sentenced to 3 ½ years in prison. By the time his case reached the appeals court, the key witness in the case was found dead underneath his house. A medical examiner concluded that Willie Junior had been poisoned by drinking antifreeze, and his death was ruled a suicide.

Kahn and another appeals judge had initially planned to reverse the conviction -- but before that could happen, the entire First District Court of Appeal voted to take up the case. In June 2006, a divided court voted 10-4 to uphold the conviction against Childers.

The most underrated attorneys would be attorneys on the wheel assigned the most complicated cases who achieved excellent results. Since this blog is anonymous the most appropriate person to rate criminal defense attorneys are prosecutors and judges, and the ones to rate asas are defense and judges and Judges; ask yourself, who file motions you delay hearing and who do you have to consult with other judges about their motions and trial objections, be honest. I nominate as an underrated ASA Carin Kagen, overrated Laesar and Waxman. Defense; overrated Jason Grey,David Marcus, Joe Rosenbaum, Simon Steckel, underrated David Alschuler, Dan Lurvey.

Abe Laeser is not underrated. Anyone who would say that has NEVER tried a case against him. Perhaps you have never tried a case period. Karen Kagan is a lunatic and should simply never be rated anything accept a first rate ..... Seriously, she needs a electro shock therapy.